


The Height of Love

by TheFullmidgetAlchemist



Series: That Random Victorian AU No One Asked For [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Cats, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Like, M/M, Multi, all that jazz, although youll still understand without having read it, but from eruri p.o.v, eruri backstory, for, i like cats, i realLY SUCK AT TAGS AHAHAH, so i may suggest hat u read my other fic, this romance fic so be prepared, title probably will change but i dunno, turns into romance, will cross over in that fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-28
Updated: 2015-09-25
Packaged: 2018-04-05 23:36:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4199358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFullmidgetAlchemist/pseuds/TheFullmidgetAlchemist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi Ackerman did not have an easy childhood.  Life was rough, his mother was sick, and his father was simply not there.  But in his rainy life, one single ray of light was enough to scatter the clouds, and that ray of light came by the name of Erwin Smith.</p><p>[This is going to start from child!Eruri and their friendship and how it evolved, but the main focus will be on their journey rather than their romance.  But there will be fluff.  And angst]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Smile

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which Levi falls a lot
> 
> this is basically their childhood up till age fourteen so yeaH
> 
> also Levi still laughs here (shock! wonder!)

The young boy was sitting on a rubble wall, staring at a group of children playing some distance away from him. His short, black hair fell in front of his eyes, and he pushed it away impatiently with one skinny hand. His clothes hung off his thin frame, and he pulled them closer to him, shivering slightly in the light breeze. He was alone; he didn't really have friends. He looked on, longingly, as the children played, emitting loud yells of mirth that stung him more than he dared to admit. One of the children in particular held the boy's attention the longest. His hair shone gold in the morning sun, and his smile shone brighter. 

The boy huffed slightly to himself, pulling his legs up to his chin and wrapping his arms tightly round them, resting his chin on his knees. The sudden movement seemed to attract the attention of Golden Boy, whose head whipped round and fell on the dark-haired boy. As soon as his eyes landed on him, the dark-haired one immediately lowered his gaze, curling into an even tighter cocoon, as if to hide from the scrutiny of his gaze. 

As he shivered, his eyes tightly screwed shut, he felt rather than heard the presence of the boy next to him. His head slowly peeked from behind his knees as he properly took in the boy standing in front of him, currently holding the cardigan he'd been wearing a few minutes ago. “Here,” he said, his voice as bright as his smile. “You look cold.”

The other boy reached out tentatively, unused to any acts of kindness. “Thanks,” he muttered cautiously. The blonde put out a hand. “My name's Erwin,” he said cheerfully.

The boy who was currently struggling to put on the cardigan took the proffered hand and said, “Levi.” They shook hands solemnly, then Erwin let go and helped Levi untangle his stringy limbs from the cardigan. He buttoned it up for him, and then smiled dazzlingly. Levi, still stunned from the sudden influx of attention, smiled back on reflex. Erwin's eyes shone, and he said, “You should smile more. You look pretty when you smile.”

And Levi was caught so off-guard that he fell off the wall.

As Erwin helped him up again, laughing. Levi pretended to grumble and scowl, but when Erwin's laughter continued on, Levi gave in and started laughing too, his laughter rusty from disuse, a high, reedy sound against the deeper roll of Erwin's voice. 

Erwin went back to play with his friends after Levi declined his offer to join them, and Levi watched him leave, the smell of freshly washed clothes and grass that Levi would come to associate with Erwin surrounding him.

And from that moment on, Levi was never alone again.

He wasn't alone when, at the age of five, he started attending 'school', which was nothing more than a single room with an old, stout man teaching them how to read and write, and he was met with fierce bullies with even fiercer fists. It had been Erwin who'd stood in front of Levi, shielding him from the hate of the world. It had been Levi who'd wept over his bruises and busted lip, but Erwin had shook it off, and stated that it didn't even hurt one bit.

It was Levi then, who, after everyone started calling Erwin “Eyebrow”, started flipping everyone off discreetly from behind Erwin's back without Erwin ever realising, and soon the nickname dried off. Erwin always wondered how, but when he'd asked Levi, he'd only shrugged.

Levi was, for the first time, happy. He never thought he'd ever be happy, not with his mother so very ill at home, and the disappearance of his father that left them with virtually no income at all. Erwin had noticed how thin Levi was, and had taken it a habit to pack extra lunch and share it with Levi. Little did he know that Levi never ate it all, but took some of it with him back home, and gave it to his mother. 

It was soon after Levi turned 9 that his mother died.

He and Erwin had been the best of friends for four years already, and they were nearly inseparable. Erwin was Levi's only support, and Erwin took his responsibility very seriously. However, when his mother died, there was the problem of where Levi should go. A nine-year-old couldn't live on his own, however much Levi argued that he was capable of doing just that. 

It was decided that he would live in the nearby orphanage. Levi fought against this final decision. He didn't want to be closed in with other children. He knew what the consequences would be. He was right, of course. The children there, much stronger and much crueller than the village children, made a mess of Levi's fragile emotional state, and Levi withdrew into himself so much that he hardly spoke any more. Erwin hardly saw him that year, as the orphanage had very strict schedules for its kids, and visitors were not allowed to visit the children unless it was an emergency.

The year after that, Levi was booted out, because in a fit of rage, he'd wrecked the furniture in his room with strength unheard of for a ten-year-old. He was sent back to his home, which was precisely what he'd wanted, on the condition that Mrs Smith, the closest adult to Levi, seeing as he had no other relatives to rely on, would check up on him every day. Mrs Smith took this burden cheerfully, and Erwin couldn't be more happy at the arrangement. Their friendship, which had wilted slightly during the previous year, blossomed again, this time with more intensity. Levi grew out of his skinny phase, and started to slowly come out of his shell. By the age of 13, he was strong, healthy, and cheerful, and admittedly, much more mature than Erwin. The years of hardship had strengthened him and aged him before his years. The tables had turned now. Levi protected Erwin, albeit more discreetly than Erwin had years before. 

Erwin's idealistic, extremely positive world-view got him many enemies, and Levi could often been see glaring at people from behind Erwin's back, as if daring them to make a move on Erwin. Once, that very thing did happen. One of their classmates had swung a fist at Erwin's face after a particular, highly unrealistic idea sprung up from the sunny depths of Erwin's brain, but it never did make contact with Erwin's nose. Levi had hooked a leg round Erwin's legs, tripping Erwin in the process (which, Erwin had pointed out afterwards, had still hurt) and intercepted the fist with an open palm. A stunned silence had fallen, which had been followed by a collective gasp as Levi swung his own fist straight between the poor boy's eyebrows, landing it with a very satisfactory crack.

Needless to say, they had both gotten suspended for the week.

It was around that time when they began holding hands. It wasn't something they'd discussed, but rather something that had happened naturally. It started when Erwin had reached his hand out to stop Levi from defending him from one of his bullies. Levi had glared icily at the bully, possibly scaring him for life, and, without much thought, took Erwin's hand in his own, and allowed himself to be led away. They held hands discreetly under their school desks, at first to support each other from the snide remarks and the cold glares, and later because it became a habit, and because they felt safe. Levi's small hands were permanently cold, be it summer or be it winter, and it was just another excuse for Erwin to hold his hand, under the pretense that all this was just to warm his hands.

From then on, their friendship took a slightly different path. I guess some people call this falling in love. It happened gradually, and became as natural as breathing to both of them. The feeling of safety they got round each other morphed into something deeper and stronger, and by the age of fourteen holding hands held a deeper meaning to them.

It was around this time that these feelings started showing themselves, disguised by the innocent wall of friendship.

It was summer, but it was raining, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Levi loved the rain, loved hearing it patter on the windows and watching the rivulets of raindrops pooling at the bottom of the glass, loved especially the smell of rain and grass that lingered afterwards. That's what he was doing at this moment – staring at the raindrops as they slowly meandered their way to the bottom of the glass. It had strangely therapeutic effects on him, and he was almost drifting off to sleep when he heard two knocks on the door. 

He smiled immediately. Erwin.

They'd developed a code throughout the years to recognise who was knocking. Two rapid knocks meant that Erwin was on his own. Three knocks indicated that Erwin was with his mother. It usually warned Levi just how lively he must look. 

He straightened up from where he'd been crouched next to the window and went to answer the door, opening it to reveal a sodden Erwin, trying in vain to shield his usually perfect hair from the merciless rain. Levi almost laughed seeing him in that state of disarray, but refrained from actually doing so, knowing that the result will almost certainly be Erwin tackling him to the floor and tickling him till he ran out of breath. He moved to one side before he was flattened over by Erwin barrelling straight in, barely muttering a word of greeting before he disappeared in Levi's room, where the towels were stored. 

“Oi, don't you dare leave raindrops all over my floor, you little shit!” Levi shouted after his retreating form, suddenly seeing red at the thought of his perfectly cleaned floor splotched with water.

“Relax, I know better than to dirty your precious floor.” Erwin's voice sounded muffled, and Levi guessed, correctly, that he was currently wrapped up in as many towels a he could find from ransacking Levi's towel drawer. Levi rolled his eyes, fighting to keep the smile off his face as he strode after Erwin, finding the taller boy hidden beneath a mountain of towels. 

Levi sat delicately on the old, battered dressing table that used to belong to his mother, folding his right leg over his left one as he scrutinised Erwin's unmoving form. After a minute of silence, Erwin's head popped up from somewhere round the top of the towel pile, and he looked so comic that it was enough to make Levi drop his cool façade and burst out laughing, which had, obviously, been Erwin's goal from the very beginning.

Levi wiped the tears from his eyes as he landed lithely on the floor and ruffled Erwin's hair, which, being still damp, stuck up in some interesting angles. Erwin's impressive eyebrows joined in the middle, and Levi backed off, knowing instinctively what was going to happen next. 

Towels flew up in the air as Erwin burst out of them in a sudden flurry of movement, but Levi was already gone, running towards the stairs, Erwin chasing afterwards and catching him before Levi managed to even step on the landing. This could be due to the fact that Levi was laughing too hard to concentrate on the actual running, and maybe a small part of him wanted Erwin to catch up to him. Erwin lifted him clean from the floor and carried the smaller boy towards the living room, dodging the flailing limbs expertly, smiling slightly at the stream of uncouth, vulgar words Levi was currently reciting.

And then the tickling began. 

Being ticklish was the only known weakness Levi ever admitted to having, along with the weakness for idealistic blondes, apparently. Erwin took complete advantage of this fact, and was only satisfied when Levi panted out that he couldn't fucking breathe. He looked down at Levi, lying beneath him on the sofa where Erwin had thrown him unceremoniously, and bent down, leaving a kiss on his nose.

Levi was so surprised that he toppled of the sofa, somehow managing to pull Erwin with him so that they both ended up on the floor, side by side, staring up at the ceiling with its flaking paint. They stayed there in silence, their hands finding each other unconsciously, and Levi finally broke the silence by saying, “What was that for?”

Erwin shrugged, glancing sidelong at Levi before answering, “I just felt like it.”

Levi was still staring at the ceiling, and Erwin was starting to panic slightly when Levi spoke again, softly. “My mother once told me, before she got so sick that she couldn't speak, that you kiss people that you love. I'd told her that no one can ever love me, because I'd let her get sick, and I was a bad person. She had cried, then, and told me she loved me, and that it wasn't my fault.”

He glanced at Erwin then, and his eyes lingered on his, searching for something in his eyes. “Why did you do that?”

“You're my best friend. How can I not love you?”

Levi smiled, and squeezed his hand. “Really?”

Erwin sat up, pulling Levi up in a sitting position as he went. “Yes, really.”

He opened his arms, and Levi stared at them, not really sure what he was meant to do. Erwin sighed, and lifted Levi's arms for him, and then slipped his own arms beneath them and hugged him, and after a while, he felt Levi's arms relax and tentatively close around Erwin. Levi rested his face on Erwin's shoulder, and they stayed like that for a long while, as the rain pattered on outside, and the thunder rumbled off in the distance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note that Eyebrow is Erwin's canon nickname when he was a child. bless you Isayama
> 
> i have motivated myself and here's the first chapterrrr


	2. Pirate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> cat #1 makes an appearance
> 
> i did warn you in the tags

Levi woke up the next day to a strange sensation. He opened his eyes cautiously, extending his arm to his chest. His fingers touched warm fur and recoiled, and any remnants of sleep vanished instantly as he realised what it was.

It was a cat. 

Levi stared at it, caught between wonder, shock, and puzzlement at how this random cat had managed to sneak into his house. The cat was tiny, its scrawny frame huddled in a tight circle, its sleek black fur shining in the first rays of sun peeking through the window, its face hidden by its own tiny paws. Levi carefully placed his hand on the cat, and took it off quickly as the cat's head shot up. It turned its eyes towards Levi, expressing deep dissatisfaction, and went back to sleep. In those few moments, Levi found out that the cat had iridescent green eyes, and that its black colour was broken in just one place; a white patch of fur covered the area around its right eye. Levi thought about calling it Patch, but dismissed it as stupid. He thought hard, lying on his back, unable to move, the cat rising and falling in time with his breaths, until the name came to him, just as the cat slipped off him and tumbled to the ground, landing in a very undignified manner and punctuating its fall with a very irritated yowl.

Pirate. Levi grinned, then looked down at the kitten, whom he assumed to be male, and found him in a very complicated position, licking his bum as if nothing had just happened. Levi slid off the bed and landed on his bare feet, careful not to step on the tail. He padded off towards the kitchen, and after a while, Pirate followed him, apparently concluding that this tiny human who'd made such a good resting place was now his owner.

Then came the first problem. What do you feed this tiny creature currently twisting in between his feet? Levi took out a jar of water, pouring some in a shallow bowl and placing it on the floor. Pirate made a beeline for the bowl and stared intently at the contents for a while, and then settled on the floor and began to drink, its small pink tongue darting in and out of the water.

Satisfied, Levi opened the pantry door, staring at its contents while scratching his head. Finally, he managed to assemble some sort of breakfast for the cat, placing the bowl next to the other one, and the cat immediately began devouring everything, appearing to not even chew the food before swallowing it. Levi stared at him for a few moments, fascinated, then prepared breakfast for himself, and they ate in silence.

That is, until they were interrupted by a two knocks on the door. Levi raised his eyebrows. Erwin was early today. He finished off his breakfast leisurely, and went to open the door after looking out of the window to make sure it really was Erwin. When he opened the door, he found Erwin leaning against the said door, and Levi neatly stepped out of the way as Erwin entered the hallway in an ungainly stumble. Levi raised an eyebrow, and Erwin straightened up and looked accusingly at Levi, ears turning red in embarrassment. Levi shrugged. “You would've flattened me if you fell on me.”

Erwin ran his hand through his hair, a gesture that was very familiar to Levi. Whenever Erwin wanted to appear cool and collected, he would run his hands through his hair and stand up straighter. Levi would always roll his eyes discreetly, but he would secretly find it very amusing. He was about to drop a comment on the current shade of red Erwin's ears were turning when they were interrupted by Pirate, who was twining around Erwin's feet as if she'd known him for ages. Levi raised his already raised eyebrow a bit higher.

Erwin's ears went maroon, a detail that Levi gleefully took in. It would be useful later when Erwin would make a snide comment on Levi's height. The blonde nervously crouched next to the cat, extending an arm towards it. Pirate took one look at it, and ignored it completely, preferring to jump straight on Erwin's shoulder. Erwin straightened up, wobbling slightly on his haunches, the cat perched on his shoulder like some misshapen parrot. Levi stared.

Erwin shrugged, the cat rising and falling with his shoulder. He winced as the cat licked his ear, and then, apparently bored of the situation, dug its claws into Erwin's back till its front part reached Erwin's other shoulder, and promptly fell asleep. Levi watched the cat's acrobatics, his eyebrow raised so high it had merged with his hairline. Erwin's eyes had never left Levi's face, and the only signal of his deep embarrassment was the current shade of puce his ears had turned. 

Levi broke the silence with a question. “Did that hurt?”

Erwin nodded vigorously, seemingly unable to speak.

“I'm taking it you were acquainted with the cat before, am I right?”

Erwin nodded again, his eyes leaving Levi's face for the first time to glance at the wall behind the shorter boy. Levi moved slightly so he re-entered Erwin's line of vision. “Care to explain?”

Erwin was trapped between the wall and Levi's eyes. He had nowhere to run. Before he had a chance to begin, however, Levi's eyes suddenly softened, and he said, lowering his eyebrow slightly, “How did you know I like cats anyway?”

Erwin felt life returning to his limbs. The imminent death he'd been sure he was going to suffer faded away, and he felt his tongue loosen, and he was finally able to speak. “Ah well, you see, it was my mother's idea.”

Levi tried not to smile, but failed. “Blaming it on your mother, eh?”

Erwin's eyes darted to the floor. “It was my idea.”

“There you go. That wasn't to hard, was it?”

Erwin's eyes shot up again. He glared at Levi. “You're enjoying this terribly, aren't you?”

Levi grinned, but didn't answer. He waited for Erwin to continue, and eventually, Erwin sighed, and began again. “It was my idea. You'd once mentioned you liked cats, and I thought that having one to keep you company wasn't a bad idea. Mother thought it was a good idea. She said it will help build up your 'sense of responsibility' or something. So we gave you a kitten.”

“Just like that?”

“Yes.”

Levi stepped closer to Erwin and put a finger beneath his chin, forcing his head up, not noticing how Erwin's pulse sped up. “Oi,” Levi said evenly. “I'm not mad at you.”

Erwin's eyes cleared. “You're not?”

“No, you big fool. I said I liked the cat, didn't I?”

“You certainly did.”

They stood like that for a while, then Levi slid his arms around Erwin and buried his head in the sleeping pile of fur covering Erwin's shoulders. Erwin heard a very muffled 'Thank you' drift up, and smiled, his shoulders sagging in relief as his own arms went round Levi and almost drove all the air out of his lungs. He knew that was the only thanks he was going to get for all his trouble, but coming from Levi, it meant the world to Erwin. The bruises he'd gotten from falling from the tree outside Levi's house and successfully managing to hit all the branches on his way down after tossing the cat unceremoniously through Levi's open bedroom window seemed worth it. 

Levi's head popped up from the fur, and whispered slowly, “I can't breathe.”

Erwin let go of him and Levi staggered backwards, nose twitching from the stray pieces of fur that he'd managed to inhale. Pirate woke up and dug his claws into Erwin's shoulder again, then jumped delicately to the floor, its tail held up, darting off to God knows where. Levi walked off into the kitchen, knowing that Erwin would follow at his own time. Erwin stood alone in the hallway, gathering his dignity from where it had scattered all over the floorboards, and considered his situation now.

He was aware that he loved Levi more than just simple friendship. He'd almost let it slip the day before, but had quickly covered up his tracks. It wasn't an exaggeration, or an infatuation. He was sure of this. The problem that arose was, of course, the fact that Levi was his best friend. Erwin rolled his eyes at how pathetic he was being in this current situation, and shrugged. If he didn't dwell on it, maybe it would go away. But even he couldn't deny how his pulse had picked up earlier at Levi's sudden proximity. Erwin covered his face with his hand, feeling his ears turn red. Levi's head popped into the hallway again. “You gonna stand there all day?”

Erwin looked up and smiled sheepishly. “I'm coming, I'm coming.”

Levi watched as the taller boy walked past him, and as he felt the displaced air flowing in his wake hit his face, he smelled Erwin's distinct smell, that of freshly washed clothes and grass, and felt his head spin. He swallowed, trying to clear his head, trying not to recall what he'd felt yesterday when Erwin had kissed his nose. Did friends do that? He wouldn't know that, seeing as Erwin was his only friend. But his heart had leapt with something more than friendship, something that scared him in its intensity. He felt a hand curl round his shoulder and jumped, as Erwin said, laughingly, “Is the empty hallway that interesting?”

Levi glared up at him, unable to think of an excuse at such a short notice. He followed Erwin sullenly to the kitchen, and washed the dishes quietly as Erwin rambled on about what his mother was cooking that day, and soon they had fallen into their usual routine, any thoughts of feelings safely pushed away into a dark abyss that would come and haunt them in their sleep. Pirate streaked around the kitchen, chasing a fly, his fur standing on end and her pupils blown wide, the green iris barely visible. Levi was highly amused with her antics, and almost dropped one of the plates from laughing so hard. Erwin saved it just before it slipped, and gently steering Levi to one of the kitchen chairs, he took over the washing up, leaving Levi doubled over with laughter, something that happened quite rarely. Levi's laughter was something that Erwin would do anything to hear, such as almost getting impaled by a tree. He found that it was strangely worth it. 

Once Erwin had dried all the dishes and Levi's sides were aching from laughter, and Pirate had stretched out over the sunny windowsill and had fallen asleep, they left the house, making sure that Pirate had enough food and water for when he woke up. It was around nine when they arrived at the teacher's house, giving them thirty minutes till the start of lessons. Erwin was teasing Levi about the his hair, which was being buffeted by the wind and flying in all directions, when two girls approached them. One of them, the smaller of the the two, with her ginger hair bunched into two tiny ponytails on top of her head, was looking at them curiously, huge amber eyes taking in every detail. The older of the two adjusted her glasses over her nose and spoke to Erwin, completely ignoring Levi. “Is this Mr Young's class?”

Erwin nodded guardedly, taking a minute step in front of Levi, something he unconsciously did to protect Levi. The bespectacled girl nodded, and suddenly grinned widely. “My name's Hanji. This is my best friend, Petra. Pleased to meet you!”

Erwin shook her hand politely, and then Hanji's gaze joined Petra's, and they both stared at Levi, who felt the urge to dig a hole in the ground to escape the intensity of their gazes. Erwin took over, sensing Levi's discomfort. “I'm Erwin, and this is Levi.”

Levi gave a small nod towards them, and after that they drifted off. Lessons started soon after that, and the girls were introduced formally. They were Levi's age, which was surprising, seeing as Petra looked half the age she really was. She sat next to him, and Erwin sat on his other side, as always. 

The day passed by quite leisurely from than on. When classes finished, the boys made it to Erwin's house, and after lunch they helped around the house, Levi matching Mrs Smith's pace perfectly, Erwin bumbling around trying to be useful but generally getting in other people's feet.

The sky was turning dark outside when they'd finished, and Levi was just thinking about heading home when kindly Mrs Smith approached him. “Stay the night, sweetheart. It's already getting dark. You can sleep in Erwin's spare bed, and if you ever feel lonely, it's always ready for you, okay?”

Levi smiled up at her, nodding his thanks. He walked upstairs and found Erwin sitting on his bed, back facing the door. He looked up when he heard Levi come in, and raised a questioning eyebrow. “Your mother told me to stay.” He shifted slightly from heel to heel. “I...em...don't have clothes to sleep in...?”

In the end, all Levi needed was one of Erwin's older shirts, which reached down to just above Levi's knees. Erwin stifled his giggles as Levi stared at his reflection in the tarnished mirror hanging in Erwin's room, and then shrugged and pulled the shirt around him, hugging his arms around his body. He walked towards the bed and sank down on it, marvelling at how soft it was compared to his own bed back home. Erwin drew up the covers over his bed, and after muttering a 'Good Night' to Levi, he blew out the bedside candle and the darkness blanketed them both in silence.

Levi couldn't sleep. His mind replayed the events that had happened exactly five years ago, as he stood by his mother's bedside, gripping her thin, weak hand as she slowly slipped away from him. To his horror, he found tears slipping quietly from his eyes, dripping from the bridge of his nose on to the pillow as he lay there, his back to Erwin. He heard Erwin shift on the other bed, and a soft voice asked, “Levi, are you okay?”

“Not really.” His voice quavered as the tears spilled faster. He tried to wipe them away, but more kept coming, and he gave up. “It's just...my mother died five years ago, and I...”

Levi buried his face in his pillow to dull the sobs that were shaking his body uncontrollably, not hearing Erwin as the latter got out of his bed and crept slowly to Levi's. Levi felt the mattress dip down, and suddenly there were strong arms around him, hauling him upright. Levi's head found Erwin's shoulder, his hands pressed to his face as he cried, Erwin holding him tightly and rocking him gently, rubbing his cheek against Levi's hair. 

It lasted for ten minutes. Finally, Levi was able to regain control over his emotions, and Erwin loosened his grip slightly, allowing Levi some movement as he wiped his cheeks from the salty tears. Erwin's eyes had long since adjusted to the dark, and as he looked at Levi's face intently, he tried to decipher his current mood. Levi turned to him with a hint of a smile, and said hoarsely, “Thanks.”

Erwin smiled, and whispered back, “It was nothing.” He made as if to move away, but Levi gripped him tightly. “No. Stay. Please.”

Erwin's heart broke at how vulnerable Levi's voice sounded, and he placed one hand to Levi's cheek, briefly, murmuring an “All right” as he lay down beside Levi, the smaller boy snuggling against him and falling asleep almost immediately, having apparently exhausted himself from all that crying, Erwin following in his wake after running his fingers through Levi's impossibly soft hair, something he'd been yearning to do for some time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to M for helping me stay awake while i finished this ahaha its twenty to one in the morning here help
> 
> hope you enjoyed this 
> 
> little eruris is the reason why i live nowadays
> 
> bye 
> 
> Claire xxxxx


	3. Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> idiots being idiots

Erwin was the first to wake up the next morning. He didn't open his eyes immediately, and just laid there, listening to the early morning birds and Levi's quiet breathing. He opened his eyes, and they immediately fell on Levi. He was curved in a C shape, both his arms tucked under his face and his feet stretched out in front of him, which had somehow become entangled in Erwin's own legs at some point in the night. Erwin smiled gently at the effect sleep had on Levi's face. It softened his features, relaxing his eyebrows and leaving his mouth slightly open, just enough to cause Erwin's ears to turn maroon. He reached out and gently tucked a strand of hair that had fallen in front of his eyes behind his ear, leaving his hand there and stroking Levi's cheek with his thumb. He felt his eyes drooping, and considered whether he should get up. He chose against it, and allowed sleep to envelope him in its clutches once more. 

Levi's eyes flew open a few seconds after Erwin had succumbed to sleep, his face turning an uncharacteristic shade of red at the dream he'd just woken up from. He was shocked by how real Erwin's hand had felt as it brushed his hair lightly from his face, touching his cheek in the process. Levi noticed how his habit of sleeping with his legs stretched out in front of him had managed to create a tangle of legs, and he smiled, his gaze moving up to Erwin's face. His heart plunged to his feet and he took in a sharp breath, his teeth biting his lower lip as he was suddenly overwhelmed by feelings he'd never felt before, or rather, feelings that had been suppressed unconsciously and were now making their presence known. His hand carefully reached out, landing lightly on Erwin's, which was stretched out in front of him, only a short distance away from Levi's face. Levi took in every detail of the sleeping boy, from how his hair fell on the pillow, to the delicate curve of his jawline, and the way his eyelashes brushed the top his cheeks, and he knew, at that precise moment, that he was a goner.

He closed his eyes hurriedly when he heard footsteps approaching, and through his eyelashes, he watched as Mrs Smith bustled inside, pausing to fondle Erwin's hair, making it stick up everywhere, smiling at the mess of intertwined limbs and reaching out to tap Erwin's arm. His eyes opened after a few more persistent pats, and he stretched his arms over his head, yawning. Levi screwed his eyes shut, pretending to be in deep sleep while trying not think about Erwin's arms. Really, what had happened to his feelings this morning?

He felt a gentle tap on his shoulder and almost jumped out of his skin, forgetting for a moment that he was feigning deep sleep, and trying to keep his breathing as slow and steady as possible. He pretended to start suddenly after several more pats, and his eyes opened slowly, focussing on Erwin's baby-blues with difficulty.

“Good morning,” said Erwin, his voice roughened and deepened by sleep, smiling slightly at how bedraggled Levi looked, with his hair flattened to one side from where his head had rested against the pillow and the eyes that were still too full of sleep to glare. Levi nodded back, trying to hide a smile (but failing) at how Erwin's hair had lost all its uniformity during sleep, and was flying about in all directions, mostly up. Erwin caught the smirk and raised an eyebrow, as if to enquire if, perchance, Levi had looked into a mirror and seen for himself that he was just as dishevelled as he was. Levi realised that they were both still lying down, staring at each other as their wordless conversation ensued, and his legs were starting to feel numb. He looked down to where his legs where, feeling Erwin's gaze linger on his face before focussing on their legs. They both just stared at them for a while, too sleep-dazed to think much about it, but when Levi's feet felt as if they were on fire, he though he'd best say something. 

“Hey Erwin. My feet are numb.”

Erwin hummed in response, and said, “I seem to have acquired the same problem.”

Levi stared some more, before he slid his upper body up against the headboard, sliding his lithe legs from the knot they were in, wincing at the odd angle they were stuck in. Erwin contributed by somehow managing to tumble out of the bed, freeing their legs in a much faster but slightly more painful way for Erwin. While Levi was curled up in a ball on the bed, his shoulders shaking from suppressed laughter, Erwin sat up, rubbing his head ruefully and glaring at Levi as the latter gave in and started cackling, uncurling his limbs and splaying them around him like some unholy starfish. Erwin eyes glinted menacingly, and Levi only had a split-second to register that his current position made him very vulnerable to Menacingly-Glinting-Eyes Erwin before the said monster jumped on top of him, pinning his arms down above his head with his own hands and straddling Levi in a way that the terrified boy couldn't even move. 

Erwin began in a steady voice, trying not to betray the fact that this current position was doing wonders to his blood-rate, “Apologise.”

Levi, who was also currently contemplating death, thought about it. Would he let his reputation of being the most stubborn kid to have been born in this century be tainted by apologising? Not a chance. “No, shit head,” he answered back, his eyes squinting slightly at what he knew was coming next. 

Erwin's grinned, and Levi grimaced, and then Erwin's hands left Levi's arms and suddenly Levi was contemplating death with an even greater ferocity as the usual hysterical laughter that left him breathless was accompanied by a feeling of weightlessness in his brain. Levi couldn't figure out if this was due to the lack of oxygen or due to the fact that Erwin's fingers kept maddeningly brushing Levi's skin from where his shirt had ridden up. As tears started pouring out of the delirious boy’s eyes, Erwin finally gave in and rolled off Levi.  Levi gasped air in and out of his mouth and wiped the tears from his face with us much dignity as he could muster.  Glancing over, Levi wasn’t surprised to see Erwin still grinning, but he was a little surprised to see the pink colouration on his ears.  He flicked the ear closest to him, earning a shove that sent him sprawling to the floor. As Levi laid there, too exhausted to sit up, Erwin's head popped into view, peeking over the mattress like some breed of giant cat. Speaking of cats - Levi's eyes shot open in realization. Sitting up, he moved too quickly and - admittedly quite on purpose - bashed his head against Erwin’s, causing a wave of dizziness to briefly fog up his movements. After his mind stopped spinning, he looked up to see  Erwin looking at him warily from where he'd taken shelter under the pillows, looking extremely comical. However, Levi wasn't paying attention, because he'd suddenly remembered that he had a cat. 

 

Oh God.

Erwin had sat up again, rubbing his forehead discreetly. “Levi...?” he began warily, and stopped when Levi turned his eyes on him.

“Pirate.”

“What?”

“My cat. Home. Alone.” 

Erwin's eyes cleared. “Ah. Maybe we should go check on him.”

Levi dashed out of the room, trying not to trip on the unsteady floorboards, picking his clothes from the floor on the way and abruptly shut himself in the bathroom. He dressed up as fast as he could and dashed back to Erwin's room, skidding to a halt in front of the room noiselessly. He almost stepped in the room, but paused when he caught sight of Erwin. 

The boy was half out of his clothes, with his back to Levi, and Levi swallowed thickly as he tried to get his feet to move backwards, only to realised with a dazed kind of horror that he was transfixed. He drew in a ragged breath, the sound somehow, thankfully breaking the spell. He jerked his legs from the ground where they’d been rooted firmly and took three rapid steps away from the door, resting against the wall and sliding down till he hit the ground. 

Levi's head fell down into his hands, which were trembling slightly. He felt panic rising in him as he took in everything he was feeling, and realised that this was probably not normal. It was only his back, Levi tried to reason, but all that he was registering was how Erwin's back muscles flexed as he stretched his hands above his head, the early morning sun catching the ridges of muscles as they rippled beneath his skin, short wisps of blonde hair curling up at the nape of his neck.  Levi felt woozy, and stood up in an effort to beat some rational thought into his head.  He strayed towards the door and peeked in cautiously to see Erwin pulling on a shirt, presenting Levi with another view of his glorious back.  Levi tried to regulate his breathing by sucking in long, slow breaths, but it wasn't helping, especially when Erwin suddenly twisted around, one of his impressive eyebrows arched above the other.  Levi panicked and tried for a smile, which didn’t exactly work.  Erwin got up and walked towards Levi, and Levi fought the urge to shrink back against a corner.  When he reached Levi he smirked, and asked slowly, “Were you here all this time?” 

Levi shook his head rapidly.  “No, of course not,” he said, and was slightly horrified to find his usual monotone voice had risen by eight octaves and sounded constricted.

Erwin grinned, but didn’t say anything else, and reminded Levi about Pirate, whom Levi had completely forgotten due to far more interesting things that had occupied his brain.   Erwin casually brushed past him, and it was only then that Levi noticed his flaming ears.   

Levi tried to make sense of this, and gave up, his brain too befuddled to concentrate properly.  He followed Erwin wordlessly, mulling things over, trying to make sense of the sensory overload he’d just suffered through.  He was so lost in thought that he didn’t realise that Erwin had stopped, and of course, walked straight into him, his face hitting his back.  Or rather, seeing as he was tiny, it hit the base of his spine, which didn’t help stabilise his tentative grip on his sanity.  He muttered an apology and Erwin shook it off with a smile, and they walked out. 

The sun was high in the sky by that time, taking with it most of Levi’s weird feelings up with it.  They had a pretty normal conversation on the way to Levi’s house, with the usual banter and elbows-in-the-gut that sent Erwin sprawling on the grass.  Levi smirked in satisfaction as Erwin dove face first in the soil for the fifth time, and shielded his eyes to see if he could spot his house in the distance.  Which was , of course, a mistake.  Suddenly, the world turned upside down and Levi was looking at a very interesting patch of soil while spitting out strands of grass. 

Erwin was beside himself with laughter, and Levi twisted around, resting his head on his linked hands and glaring at him, fighting the urge to smile and the urge to punch him between his perfect eyebrows.  Erwin’s laughter faded away at the intensity of the glare, and he smiled sheepishly. Levi couldn't hold much longer, so he abandoned himself to the laughter that he'd been holding back.  
It was strangely releasing to laugh, and it was even more so when Erwin joined in, just like the first time they’d met, their differently pitched voices weaving around each other in the air:full of butterflies, flying grains of pollen, and their loud giggles.  It was idyllic, the gentle breeze wafting the heady smell of flowers over towards the two teens, lying side by side, their hands automatically fitted together, smiling idiotically at the sun. 

“That’s some sleeping position you got there,” Erwin commented after a while.  Levi winced slightly at the memory, remembering how nice it had felt and how it shouldn’t have felt quite so nice.  Erwin continued, unaware of Levi’s eyes that had focussed on him, observing how his hair turned almost white in the dazzling sunlight.  “And you’re quite the deep sleeper.  I woke up some time before Mother came to wake us up, and I could swear you were drooling.”

Levi’s eyebrows descended rapidly over quickly narrowing eyes and joined in the middle as Erwin giggled at the sudden rush of heat that painted Levi’s cheeks red.  “I do not drool,” he stated firmly, trying to pump in as much confidence as he could even as he was consumed by sudden doubt.

“You were so.”

“Oh God Erwin, we forgot the cat again.”

“Ah yes.  We should go.”

Levi prided himself on his (very blunt) subject change, and Erwin, being the kind soul that he was, didn't point out the lack of subtlety Levi seemed to possess.  They struggled to sit up, Erwin wincing slightly at the bruise that was probably forming on his stomach where Levi’s extremely sharp elbows had connected with his skin, Levi trying to brush out the pollen grains from his hair.  Erwin observed the vain struggle with amusement, until he gently pushed Levi’s hands away and picked out the obstinate grains, flicking Levi’s nose with his index finger when he was done.  Levi scrunched his nose, and the airborne pollen grains took the opportunity to invade it.

Erwin had barely turned his back to Levi when a gigantic sneeze, completely out of proportion for such a petite figure, caused him to jump out of his skin.  He turned cautiously around to find Levi looking back at him nonchalantly, as if nothing had happened. 

Erwin thought it best not to comment, and turned back, leading the way to Levi’s house.

Finally, they arrived without further incident.  Levi tried to fit the key to the lock, but his hands were shaking for some mysterious reason.  Erwin came up behind him and grasped his hand, slowing down the shaking, and Levi finally managed to unlock the door, his fringe hiding the redness on his face.  Erwin, who, unknown to Levi, was observing Levi very closely that day, squinted uncertainly.  Was he over-thinking this whole situation?  He shrugged, and followed the sound of Levi screeching his cat’s name at the top of his lungs.

“OI PIRATE - WHERE ARE YOU YOU LAZY ASS?”

A very irritated meow drifted from upstairs returned his call and Erwin noticed Levi’s shoulders sag slightly, and realised that he’d been worried about the cat. He pondered on whether or not he should tell Levi that leaving a cat alone for a day was not gonna kill the cat, seeing as cat’s are naturally independent creatures, but decided to leave the matter untold. 

Levi appeared in the kitchen, where Erwin had settled down on one of the chairs lying around, carrying the cat in his arms.  Erwin almost spit out the contents of the glass of water he’d just helped himself to at the particular way Levi was carrying the cat.  The cat was bent in a sitting position, his back to Levi’s front and his back feet sticking out, Levi’s left arm beneath its butt and his right arm across its tummy.  The cat was looking highly displeased, a thing it conveyed by its loud hissing and tail twitching.  Levi dropped the cat to the floor, and it immediately forgot its irritation and remembered its hunger. 

As it clawed at Levi’s leg while he tried, unsuccessfully, to shake it off, Erwin began to notice that Levi was shaking once more.  It was subtle at first, but as Levi bent down to place the bowl of fresh food on the floor, Erwin was slightly shocked to see that he almost dropped the bowl due to it.  Levi seemed to notice this for the first time, because he scrunched his brow in puzzlement.  Erwin got up from the chair and strode towards Levi, lifting his chin up and placing his hand on his neck, and then on his forehead, confirming his suspicions.

“You’re coming down with something.”

“Its the sudden weather change, probably.  Oh, bother.”

“You should rest.”

“I have to clean this mess up!  This shitty cat leaves fur clumps everywhere, and I need to…”

Erwin placed a finger on Levi’s mouth, shutting him up.  “No.”

Levi glared at him through eyes that were already becoming glazed over as the fever took hold.  Finally, he succumbed to Erwin’s gentle insistence, and allowed himself to be led to the bedroom.  He threw himself on the bed in resignation, and watched as Erwin bustled around, bringing wet cloths for his face and carrying up a glass of warm milk to send Levi to sleep.  As Levi’s eyes grew heavier, Erwin pulled the covers over him and tucked him in, replacing the cloth on his forehead with a new one and adjusting it so it wouldn't fall off. 

Satisfied with his work, he told Levi firmly not to get out of bed, while he dashed home to tell his mother, who would in turn bring the local doctor to see what remedy there was for Levi’s illness.  Levi nodded absently, and watched as Erwin left the room, looking back once with the hint of a smile before disappearing.

Levi closed his eyes, and just before he was overcome by a wave of feverish sleep, his thoughts went back to their conversation in the grass, and it suddenly dawned on him that Erwin had remarked about his sleeping traits.  Which meant that Erwin had woken up before him.  Which lead him to think; why didn't he untangle himself when he had the chance?

But by then, Levi was past the point of wondering, and he gave in to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well well well wELLL
> 
> my thanks to OverMyFreckledBody for having beta'd my work and for her hilarious commentary
> 
> also im loVING THIS SO MUCH EW
> 
> if you puked from cute dont forget to comment xxxxxxxxxxxxx pls xxxxxxxxxxxx
> 
> till next time
> 
> Claire xxxxx


	4. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi is sick
> 
> He is also very confused
> 
> Poor baby

Erwin reached his house in five minutes flat. Needless to say, he had to wait another five minutes before he'd managed to get enough breath to speak coherently. His mother waited until he'd informed her of the situation in between pants of breath, becoming more worried at every word Erwin said. Erwin had barely finished speaking before she bolted out of the door, presumably heading towards Levi's house. His mother had learned to cure some illnesses from observing her father, who had been a doctor in his days. If it surpassed her knowledge, she would get the doctor. Erwin tried to bottle up as much breath as he could and took off after her, her worry fuelling his fear and lending him strength. 

He arrived at Levi's a while after his mother, finding her at his bed, kneeling next to him and taking his temperature, her face scrunched up in concentration. She was used to Levi being sick at this period of time, and she was quite used to this routine, but she never ceased to worry about him. He was such a fragile kid - even the smallest colds could have a huge effect on his health. She'd been secretly impressed by how well Erwin had coped with the situation. Managing to coax Levi into bed was always the most difficult part of the job.

She tutted under her breath, stroking his white face gently, not too happy by the cheeks that were flushed blood red, the only colour in his face. Erwin stood by the door, almost too scared to walk inside. His mother looked up, smiling slightly for his sake, and said, “He has a bad fever, and his breathing indicates a runny nose. I'll brew him up some medicine, and he'll be as right as rain in two days time, okay sweetheart?”

Erwin nodded, but stayed where he was. His mother straightened up and smoothed down her skirt. “I'll get started then. I might run out again to buy some ingredients for the medicine and for the broth I'm going to cook for him, so don't worry if it's suddenly too quiet downstairs. You could stay here and make sure he has fresh cloths on his forehead.”

Erwin nodded again, moving out of the way as his mother moved past him in a flurry of skirts and flailing hands, muttering the ingredients she needed like a mantra under her breath. Erwin moved into the gloom of the room, parting the curtains at the window slightly so that some light and air could peek through. He sat down on the rickety wooden chair next to the bed and stared at the small dust particles spiralling and meandering in the air, illuminated by the ray of sunlight pouring into the room. Levi stirred next to him, and Erwin looked down to find two eyes staring at him from the pillows.

“Hey, Levi.” He kept his voice soft so as not to worsen Levi's fever-induced headache.

Levi smiled weakly, and whispered brokenly, “Hey.”

“How are you feeling?”

“Superb.”

Erwin chuckled lightly, leaning over to touch the cloth, and finding it still cool, leaned back again. Levi watched him with dull, hooded eyes, a trickle of sweat making its way down the side of his face. Erwin took a fresh cloth and dipped it in the basin of cool water on the bedside table, and used it to wipe Levi's face gently, finishing off by dabbing it lightly on his nose. Levi moaned slightly under his breath, turning around on his bed, the bed sheets rolled up around him. Erwin stood up, and walked over to the wardrobe, getting out a fresh bed sheet and placing it on his recently vacated chair. He dragged the sodden sheet of Levi, throwing it in a pile on the floor, and threw the fresh blanket over Levi, who had started shivering.

Mrs Smith came up soon after that, juggling a bowl of broth and a mug full of steaming liquid Erwin guessed was the medicine. She sat them down next to the wash basin and turned to Levi, who'd fallen into another restless sleep. She wiped his brow carefully and shook him awake as gently as possible, earning a dazed glare. She helped him sit up straight against the headboard and forced the cup filled with medicine between his lips. He drank it down in one gulp and shuddered violently at the taste, and then grudgingly accepted small spoonfuls of the broth that Mrs Smith had prepared for him. Erwin watched from his position by the wall, feeling slightly useless, his hands grasping and ungrasping each other rhythmically. When Mrs Smith assured herself that Levi had forced down enough spoonfuls of broth, she left them, telling Erwin she was going to clean the lower level so that Levi won't have to worry about cleaning. Erwin resumed his bedside vigil, spacing out after a couple of minutes, not realising that Levi was awake.

Erwin had always had a habit of talking to himself, voicing out things that were currently occupying his brain, or weighing his heart. And now, in the quiet of the room, with the sound of his mother sloshing water over the downstairs floor, that's exactly what he did. Pirate came out from where he'd hidden under the bed and settled on Levi's chest, but Erwin didn't notice, as he allowed the stream of words to pour out of his mouth, unaware that Levi's eyes were trained on him from beneath the lashes that gave the appearance that he was still sleeping, surprisingly lucid for such a high fever.

He spoke mostly about Levi, how his heart felt complete when he was beside him, how his brain answered with doubts, but how his entire body reacted against them, and grudgingly, his brain had come to accept that what his heart and body were feeling was true emotion, be it normal or not.  He talked about his worry, how it was eating him up on the inside, how he was always on edge around this season, knowing that Levi, who overworked himself all year round, would be at his most vulnerable at this point, and inevitability he’d fall ill.  He put his head in his hands then, and it became harder for Levi to decipher the words.  He shifted slightly, careful to make it seem as if he was still asleep, turning round to face the wall so that Erwin wouldn’t see the the tear rolling down his cheek.  He wiped it away, confused as to why he was crying in the first place.  His heart called out to Erwin’s doubts, voicing the same feelings.  The raw emotion powering Erwin’s voice, making it shake in its intensity, soon faded away, and silence fell once more in the room.  Even the sound of water from downstairs had gone quiet.  The silence was strangling Levi, till at last Levi pretended to wake up suddenly because he couldn't stand the quiet. Immediately, Erwin turned his attention on him, asking him in the same gentle voice as before, with no hint of the emotion it had held only moments ago.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.  My head’s better.”

Erwin furrowed his brows, peering at Levi’s face.  He reached out and felt Levi’s cheek, tracing the path the tear had taken before falling on the pillow.  Levi froze beneath his touch, his eyes unable to tear away from Erwin’s face.  Erwin asked softly, “Is it because of your head?”

Levi nodded, and added quickly, “It’s much better now, though.”  He thought about the true answer, and decided that one tiny little lie which was kind of true (his head was still pounding painfully, whatever he might say about it being better) was not going to harm anyone.  He needed time to think, and to sort out everything that was lying strewn in his brain and heart.  He allowed himself to breathe when Erwin retracted his hand, only to freeze again when it landed on his forehead.  Erwin’s frown melted into a smile.  

“You feel cooler.  I think the fever is going down.”

Levi sighed in relief.  He hated lying down on his bed, wasting time and inconveniencing everyone.  He tried to sit up, only to be pushed back down firmly.  “Just because it’s going down doesn’t mean you can get out of bed.”

Levi pouted, and Erwin had a very strong urge to punch a wall to keep his resolve firm.  Levi, knowing now that he has some sort of advantage over Erwin, blinked slowly in Erwin’s direction.  Pirate lifted his head and joined Levi, and Erwin was confronted with two pairs of eyes blinking slowly at him.  Erwin’s resolve guttered like the flame of a candle about to go out.  He tore his eyes away from them and stood up, and Levi huffed in defeat, folding his arms over his stomach and nearly squashing the cat in the process, immediately sparking a squabble between human and feline.  Erwin glanced at them, smiling, and then walked downstairs, to find his mother sitting at the kitchen table, her head lying on her hands, which were folded on the surface of the table.  When he moved closer, he saw that she was asleep.  He hated waking her up, but it had to be done.  He shook her shoulder gently, and she woke up with a start.  

When her eyes focussed on her son’s face, her expression grew worried.  “What is it?  Has Levi complained about stronger headaches, or…”

Erwin waved his arms, pausing her in mid-sentence and spoke quickly before she could interrupt again.  “He’s better, I’m sure he’s getting better.  His head is definitely cooler, and he’s speaking quite normally.”

His mother’s demeanour changed immediately.  Her face broke into a huge smile, and her hands stopped wringing each other.  She stood up, almost toppling the chair in her haste.  

“Well let’s go check on him, shall we?”

He followed her as she strode purposefully towards the stairs, and when she flung open the door Levi’s room, he burst out laughing at Levi’s reaction, which was basically squeezing the cat a bit too hard in fright, which resulted in the cat shooting out from Levi’s grip, leaving stray clumps of fur in its wake.  Levi squinted, spitting out fur and looking generally pissed off at everything.  He tried to smile reassuringly at Erwin’s mom, but it looked more like a grimace of pain.  Erwin’s mother stooped down and touched Levi’s forehead, looking pleased.  “You’re getting better, little one,” she chuckled, pointedly ignoring Levi’s glowering glare at her nickname for him.  “We’ll wait a few more hours until the medicine kicks in.  I think you’ll be able to get out of bed tomorrow, if the fever doesn’t return during the night.”

Levi huffed grumpily, and Mrs Smith carelessly ruffled his hair.  Levi could never quite understand how his hair seemed to attract so much attention, from both the mother and her son.  He watched her as she tidied the room, wincing when she accidentally put something in a different place.  Erwin parted the curtains fully, and Levi dove under the sheets as the sun stung his eyes.  Pirate meowed from somewhere beneath the bed, and Mrs Smith, having momentarily forgotten about the cat, jumped, just in time to land on the newly emerged cat’s tail.  The resulting yowl was enough to wake up anyone who was unfortunate enough to be taking their afternoon nap in a radius of one mile.  Levi flung the sheets off him, squinting through half closed eyes just in time to see a corner of Mrs Smith’s skirt disappearing out of the doorway as she sprinted after the cat, yelling apologies, while Erwin had fallen to the floor, gently rocking himself back and forth as he shook with silent laughter. 

Levi wondered when his house had become a madhouse.  He flattened his hair to his head and glared at Erwin until he regained his composure.  “Are you done?”

Erwin looked at Levi, eyes still shedding tears of mirth, which he was trying to wipe away discreetly.  “You seem to be in better health,” he commented, choosing not to answer Levi’s comment.

Levi huffed.  It was true; his head didn’t feel like it was being bombarded by sharp, strong boulders anymore.  He could also lift it up from the pillow without feeling dizzy.  Erwin stood up, wincing as his back cracked.  Levi raised an eyebrow and said, “Should I get you your knitting, old man?”

Erwin flipped him off, his face set in a Levi-esque deadpan stare.  Levi would have clapped if he was in a better mood, but right now all he wanted to do was get out of the goddamn bed.  But he knew that Mrs Smith’s words were final, and he’d be in deep shit if he broke them.

Erwin walked to the door and leaned out slightly, shouting down the stairs to see if his mother had found the terrorised cat.  While he was doing so, Levi couldn’t help but observe him, his eyes travelling down the length of his back, remembering the ways in which his muscles had flexed at just the right places. He snapped his eyes to the wall before they could go down any further, feeling his cheeks grow warm.  Erwin turned back towards him, saying something about how Pirate was okay, he’s eating and everything, when he noticed the pink flush tinting Levi’s cheeks.  He frowned, and asked, “Are you getting your fever back?”

Levi waved his arms frantically, trying to backpedal from the situation as fast as he could.  “Oh no, no, it just quite a warm day, and…” 

“Oh, you’re right, it is quite stuffy here, I’ll just open the window then.” 

He strode to the window, and Levi pretended to be very interested in the ceiling, frowning at the patches of paint that were coming off.  He felt a rush of cool air flow into the room, and he breathed in deeply, nose tickling as he inhaled the spring air.  He sneezed, not quite as explosively as the last one, but enough to shock Erwin into almost toppling out of the window which he was still leaning against.  Erwin tried for a ‘bless you’, but it came out sounding like a question, as if Erwin wasn’t sure if you could consider that a sneeze or not. 

Erwin’s mother broke the comfortable silence that had descended between them by yelling up at them that Pirate had just threw up a hairball.  Levi couldn’t quite understand what was so joyous and momentous about this moment, and Erwin quietly raised his hand to his face, possibly questioning his mother’s sanity.  This yell was followed by a slightly louder one, proclaiming that she was going to start making soup for dinner.  Erwin leaned back out of the window, his hair flying in all directions as the wind buffeted against the walls of the house, looking like he’s just stepped of a Romantic poem, painted in emotions, outlined by nature.  Levi pretended not to have noticed such fine details, or that he was quite upset when Erwin declared that he was going downstairs to help his mother get ready.

As soon as Levi found himself alone with his thoughts, he realised that his heart had quite a lot to explain to his befuddled brain.  He tried to sort it out logically first, trying to reason out that this is just because he was feverish, and his brain was fuzzy.  This immediately sparked up older memories, when he’d felt something stir inside him but wasn’t quite sure what, days when he was perfectly healthy and where his brain was functioning at the highest level.  That sent his first theory rolling over the edge.  He tried a different approach.  He tried many different approaches, all of them more unlikely than the last, until he ended up confusing himself even more.  Finally, he decided that he’d give himself time to observe how he reacted unconsciously to Erwin, and maybe that would clear up some of the fog that was currently occupying his brain.  

He decided to distract himself by climbing out of bed, slowly pulling his feet from beneath the covers and placing them gently on the floor, wiggling his toes as he summoned up the strength to stand up.  He hauled himself upright, extending an arm to lean against the bedside table.  He caught the rim of the bowl of water instead, and almost sent it flying to the floor had it not been to his superbly good reflexes.  

He leaned against the table, breathing hard, watching the water slosh slightly out of the bowl, one eye twitching in irritation.  He straightened up, and immediately felt his legs sway and wobble.  He forced them to move, taking one step at a time, moving closer to the window.  Usually, he could barely get his elbows to rest on the windowsill, and that was when he was standing on tiptoe.  But now, he suddenly found himself able to peer out quite easily, and feeling the wind against his face was like getting sprayed in the face by cold water - it felt refreshing.  He smiled up at the sun, suddenly feeling inexplicably happy.  

At that moment, Erwin walked in, and Levi turned from the window, blinking as his eyes adjusted from the brightness of the sun to the darkness of the room.  Erwin was looking at him, puzzled.  Levi was about to apologise hastily when his words were drowned by Erwin’s question.  “Have you… grown taller?”

Levi puffed out his chest in pride.  “Yep.”

An evil grin practically split Erwin’s face in two.  “I’m still taller than you.”

Levi barely resisted the urge to jump at him and strangle him, instead resorting to his usual sarcasm.  “Well, aren’t you observant?”

Erwin stepped up to Levi and passed a hand from the top of Levi’s head to his own body, hitting his torso, at a distance slightly beneath the heart.  He raised his eyebrows.  “Impressive.  You can actually not bump your face into my ass when you’re walking behind me.” 

Levi glared up at him, trying to pass the red creeping up his neck and flooding into his cheeks for an angry flush.  Erwin raised both arms, and Levi rolled his eyes.  Erwin pretended he was tough, but not when he was up against Levi. 

The stairs creaked as heavy footfalls ascended towards them, and Erwin shoved Levi in the direction of his bed, sending Levi sprawling over the mattress. As he was flying through the air, he noted that the sun had already begun its descent. Erwin threw the covers over him and leaned casually against the wall, trying to exude an air of normality and innocence.  Levi wasn’t particularly succeeding there.  His ass was still sticking up in the position he’d landed in.  He quickly retracted it and turned around, convinced that his nose was still squashed into his face, cursing Erwin under his breath.  Erwin’s mother entered a second later, concentrating so hard on the soup she was carrying that she didn’t chide Levi on his potty mouth.  She set it carefully on the table, turning on Levi and pulling his ear, resulting in a stream of fouler words.  She sighed, knowing that this was one battle she was probably never going to win.  She turned on Erwin and said, “I’m popping home to do a spot of cleaning there, sweet pea.  You make certain that Levi eats every last drop of this soup, okay?”

Erwin’s ears had gone pink at his mother’s ridiculous pet name for him, but he nodded anyway, pretending not to hear Levi’s sniggering from where he was buried beneath the pillows, nursing his ear.

As soon as the front door slammed shut, Levi threw off the covers, his eyes slowly regaining their usual light as the fever went down.  Erwin was stirring the soup, realising that he hadn’t really eaten anything today.  He decided to ask Levi whether he could fix something quick to eat, to which Levi replied, “Sure thing, sweet pea,” and immediately dissolved into cackles as Erwin’s eyebrows became one giant angry eyebrow, the high colour in his cheeks and ears deepening as he tried to think of a comeback but instead only failed.  Erwin spun round and tried to storm out of the room dramatically,  but that failed too when the cackling stopped abruptly, only to be replaced by a pleading voice, saying just one word: “Erwin...”

Erwin knew this particular ploy, even as he felt his feet freeze to the ground.  It was Levi’s best card, and the one with the highest success rate.  Erwin didn’t trust himself to look back.  “What?”

“I’m tired of staying in bed.  I’m all better now, so could I please go downstairs?  Please?”

Erwin could feel his resolve dissolving.  “You’ll bring up your fever again if you exhaust yourself.”

“It’s just a couple of stairs Er, it’s not gonna kill me.”

“No.”

“Then carry me piggyback.  I’m sure you’ll be able to manage that, mister Oh-I’m-So-Tall-I-Can-Reach-the-Goddamn-Ceiling.”

“What does height have anything to do with me being able to lift a tiny, little person like you?”  

Erwin neatly stepped out of the way of the oncoming missile, watching the pillow tumble down the stairs before turning back to the now livid Levi.  

Erwin sighed.  “Fine, I’ll carry you downstairs.  But you’re going to promise me that you’re not going to exert yourself, okay?”

Levi nodded, only just realising what he’d brought upon himself.  Erwin kneeled beside the bed while Levi struggled to free his legs from the covers, which always seemed intent on tripping him out of bed.  He let his legs dangle out, and Erwin slid his arms underneath them, waiting patiently till Levi gathered up enough courage to lock his arms round Erwin’s neck, almost strangling him.  Erwin stood up, and Levi clung on, trying hard not to visualise Erwin’s back but kind of failing. 

Erwin was currently trying to remember how to breathe properly, and also how to walk.  He breathed deeply, not realising that Levi had uttered a noise that he probably shouldn’t have.  Levi drew a tiny bit away from Erwin in a valiant attempt to eliminate the distractions.  He remained like this throughout the journey, and thanked all the gods that he managed to retain his sanity till they reached the kitchen downstairs.  He slid off Erwin’s back and immediately sat down, faking shaky legs to hide his shaky hands, and stared blatantly at the whorls in the wooden surface of the table as Erwin dashed around the kitchen, opening cupboards like he owned the place.  Levi only raised his head when Erwin sat down next to him, buttering a piece of bread.  He decided that his voice was strong enough to talk now.  “Are you going to go home soon?”

“Why?  Do you want me to leave?” 

“No!  No,” Levi said, trying to sound less frantic and more deadpan.  “I mean, my fever usually returns when night falls, so I’ll be able to sleep it off, meaning you can go home.  You really don’t have to stay…”

“I’ll stay.  You’re only probably doing this to lure me out of the house to be able to clean.”

Levi was in fact pondering on that fact, and he couldn’t help but grin at those words, Erwin smirking in his self-satisfied ‘Thought so’ way.  They spent the next few minutes in silence, Erwin finishing off his dinner and cleaning the plate, knowing full well that if he didn’t do so he’d get puncture holes in his face from Levi’s fierce glare.  He dried it off and placed it carefully in its cupboard, turning to Levi and finding him asleep on the table.  Erwin frowned, puzzled at how someone could simply drop off so suddenly.  He sighed, moving Levi’s chair away from the table and sliding one arm under the sleeping boy’s knees, leaving the other to rest at his back.  He carried him up the stairs, making sure that his head was resting against his torso so that he wouldn’t hurt his neck.  He laid him down and belatedly remembered the soup.

He smacked his head in frustration and hurried to check if it had gone cold.  It hadn’t, but only just.  He looked at Levi, who was completely out of it, and braced himself.  He tentatively shook him awake, and, as expected, he was greeted by a pair of narrowed eyes that were almost shooting out flames.  Erwin almost felt his eyes shrivel up, and he had to take a step back.  “Er...Your soup?”

Levi muttered and grumbled, still glaring at Erwin, then he struggled in a sitting position.  Erwin pushed a hand fleetingly to Levi’s forehead, hastily pulling it away when Levi’s eyes latched to his and almost burned off his eyebrows. 

“Sit up straighter,” Erwin told Levi as he settled down the chair, balancing the plate of soup on his lap.

Levi glared at him suspiciously.  “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Your fever is slowly going up.  You clearly can’t hold a spoon in your hand.”

“Erwin, I’m sick, not paralysed.”

“Open your mouth or I’m gonna drop this spoonful on your lap.”

“Fuck you Erwin.” 

“Shall I?” Erwin began.  Realising what he just said, he scrambled to add hastily, “Drop soup all over you.” 

Levi didn’t answer, opting instead to open his mouth, all the while glaring grumpily at Erwin as his eyes slowly glazed over, both with the rising fever and the oncoming wave of sleepiness.  Erwin managed to feed him about half of the soup before he gave up.  He placed the half filled bowl on the table and reached into his pocket for the cloth he’d brought up with him from downstairs, using it to wipe Levi’s face.  Levi was beyond noticing anything at that moment, staring blankly at the wall opposite.  Erwin pulled him away from the pillows against which he was resting, plumping them up and placing them back on the mattress.  Levi fell back against them, closing his eyes and falling asleep almost immediately.  It had gotten dark outside.  Erwin placed a fresh wet cloth on Levi’s forehead, pressing a kiss to his hand and placing that hand on the cloth, and settled down on the chair, trying to find a comfortable spot.

This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eyyYYY
> 
> i'm aiming to try and write longer chapters, so you might have realised it took you longer to finish this chapter
> 
> also, when i say Romantic, I meant it as in the particular era because i have a fierce love for Romantic poets
> 
> thanks OverMyFreckledBody for beta'ing as always (and for her hilarious commentary) 
> 
> hope u enjoyed and comment if you appreciate the sexual tension boiling in this chapter <3
> 
> bye 
> 
> Claire xxxxxx


	5. Dancing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> well its interesting  
> also poor bby levi gets better

Erwin woke up the next morning with terrible back ache. His head was bent awkwardly backwards, and his feet had stretched out in front of him, resulting in a very uncomfortable position. He tried to stretch his arms, only to find them constricted by a blanket. He opened his eyes confusedly, knowing full well that he had not slept with a blanket, and at that moment, he realised that Levi was not in bed. 

He shot up from the chair, immediately bending over as his back gave an unpleasant twinge. After he straightened up slowly, his back protesting mildly at the terrible posture Erwin had slept in that night, Erwin's mind tried to steer his thoughts away from murdering Levi horribly. When he managed to straighten up fully, he hobbled to the door, his legs still stinging as the blood slowly returned to them. By the time he was half-way down the stairs, he was walking properly again, and as he hit the landing of the ground floor he took off running to the kitchen.

Of course, he found Levi sitting on the floor, playing with the cat's tail while it whisked irritably back and forth. As soon as Levi heard Erwin's angry footsteps halt in the kitchen doorway he scrambled to hide beneath the dinner table. He peered from under the table surface and tried to smile. Erwin was not impressed.

Levi hesitantly began, “My fever went down...”

“But it can go up again if you sit on floors and ignore our instructions,” finished Erwin, trying to keep his voice steady.

Levi crawled from beneath the table, Pirate looking curiously from the kitchen counter where he had jumped a few moments ago. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled.  “You know how tired I am of staring at the ceiling and not being able to do anything.”

Erwin sighed, the puff of air taking with it most of his anger.  “I know.  But you also know how dangerous it is if the fever really takes hold of your strength.”

Levi did know.  He knew very well.  It was the high fever that had taken away his mother’s life, and it was that very same fever that had threaten to take away his own life only a couple years back. 

He remembered that week with surprising clarity, considering that he’d almost died.  He hadn’t been able to eat anything, so his already thin body had become skeletal.  All his strength had left him, so he could barely lift up an arm.  He slept through most of it, but sometimes he would wake up, drenched in sweat but deathly cold, screaming from the terrible, fever-induced nightmares but not having enough strength to make his voice loud enough to be heard.  He remembered seeing people’s faces looming over him - Erwin’s mother with tears constantly pouring down her cheeks as she tried desperately to get him to eat something, anything; Erwin, deathly white, his eyes huge from not sleeping for more than three consecutive days, circled with large, purple circles, his lips taut and bitten; the doctor’s face, lined with worry and hope that decreased with each passing day.  Levi had heard them whispering at his bedside when they thought he’d fallen asleep, talks on ‘not making any progress’ and ‘death’ haunting him later on as he succumbed to sleep.

The miracle happened when no one, least of all Levi himself, expected it.  One moment he was lying there, hardly able to breathe, then the next moment he could breathe, he could suck in giant lungfuls of air and breathe them out evenly and not in short gasps.  No one knew exactly how he’d recovered when he’d been at the brink of death only a day before.  The doctor said that it was the medicine that Erwin’s mother had helped him make, Erwin’s mother claimed that it was God’s power and mercy, and Erwin didn’t do much but cry in relief.

Levi blinked, and he was back in the present.  He realised that he had tears in his eyes and hastily blinked again, trying to dry his eyes before he worried Erwin.  He threw a glance at Erwin, who seemed to have also been transported to that horrible period of time, from the way his mouth had tensed and how his eyes were staring blankly at the floorboards.  Levi moved closer to him, and Erwin blinked, and came out of whatever recollection he’d just been revisiting.  He seemed to guess that is words had brought upon both of them a wave of recollection that had shaken them both. Levi took another step towards Erwin, mindful of the things he’d heard which he wasn’t supposed to know and wondering whether now would be a good time to test his reaction to the blonde boy, who was looking at him with an inscrutable look on his face.  Levi didn’t believe in waiting, so he just went for it.  He took another step towards Erwin, so that he was mere centimetres away from the boy, so close that his breath made the fabric of Erwin’s crinkled shirt flutter, and buried his face in Erwin’s chest, realising that the top of his head could now barely reach Erwin’s chin.

Erwin instinctively brought up both of his hands and circled them around Levi, holding him tightly, as if afraid that he would vanish at any moment.  He rested his chin on top of the messy black hair, whispering apologies, his heart racing, not even trying to hide the pink colouring the tips of his ears.  Levi breathed in the smell of Erwin, felt the soft fabric of his clothes brush against his face, felt Erwin’s breath ruffle and destroy any remaining unity of his hair, and, perhaps most significantly of all, physically felt the barriers around his heart, barriers he wasn’t even aware of building, barriers put there by his unconscious need to protect himself of the inevitable sadness of losing someone who meant the world to him, felt them crumbling and dissolving.  He was scared - was Erwin really worth making his heart so vulnerable to emotion again?

But then he peeked up from where his face was still mashed against Erwin’s shirt, just in time to catch Erwin’s smile as he lifted his head from Levi’s head and looked down at him.  As the last remaining doubts were chased out by the happiness rushing through his veins, he smiled, cautiously.  Yes, he concluded.  Erwin was worth anything.

Erwin’s grip on him tightened, and suddenly Levi’s legs were parting from the ground.  Levi’s arms flew to circle round Erwin’s neck, securing him as Erwin began moving towards the stairs.  He made some vague noise of protest, which was drowned by Erwin’s unwavering resolve.  He buried his face in Erwin’s shoulder, his breath tickling Erwin’s neck.  His nose bumped against Erwin’s shoulder bones at each step they climbed, his dangling feet swinging gently from side to side.  When they reached his room, Erwin stooped low, sitting Levi down on his bed.  Levi reluctantly drew his hands away from around Erwin’s neck, not meeting his eyes as he slumped backwards. 

“Promise me you’ll stay here.  Just for one more day.”

Levi huffed with no real anger, and replied to the ceiling, “I promise.”

The rest of the day passed by in a blur of activity.  Erwin’s mother burst into the house at around nine in the morning, bringing with her freshly baked bread that filled the house with its heavenly smell.  Erwin went to his own home to rest, leaving Levi in the slightly terrifying presence of Erwin’s mother, who demanded that she’d wash him herself lest he exerted some extra force that might bring back the dreaded fever.  She combed his hair from its tangles, Levi’s mouth twisting in a painful grimace at each knot she hit and steamrollered over without paying much heed to his strangled cries of pain.  She tucked him into bed and kept a strict watch over him, checking his temperature every now and then and smiling at each positive result.  She managed to persuade him to eat a brimming bowl of soup, and tutted contentedly only when he'd scraped the bowl clean.  

He slept away most of the time between one meal and the next, still feeling woozy from the lingering effects of the fever and the drowsiness caused by the fresh dose of medicine Mrs Smith had spoon-fed him.  It was only when the sky had darkened considerably that Erwin's mother thought it safe enough to leave Levi on his own.  She promised she'd send Erwin first thing in the morning to check on him, and made sure he was safely tucked in bed before she walked out of the house and closed the door gently behind her.

Levi thought about his newly reclaimed freedom and pondered on whether he should get out of bed, but the memory of Erwin's genuinely worried face changed his mind and he remained where he was, blinking at the ceiling till sleep claimed him for its own.

He was woken up the next morning by the sound of the front door closing.  He vaguely remembered that Mrs Smith had told him she'd send Erwin at first light, and apparently she'd even provided him with the key.  Levi left his eyes shut and waited till Erwin's footfalls reached the landing of the first floor. He heard him walk softly into his room, slightly out of breath, bringing with him the smell of spring and trampled grass and lavender, and Levi's heart swelled with happiness that he couldn't quite describe.  His breath picked up, and he fought to keep it steady and regular, especially when he felt a hesitant hand touch his face, fingers leaving behind a trail of fire.  Levi inadvertently lifted his face slightly at the contact, and then thought it best to open his eyes to pretend that that was just part  of the waking up process.  Erwin didn't realise immediately and Levi could see the unguarded look in his eyes, an unexpectedly soft, fond look, that sent a wave of warmth cascading from Levi’s heart that spread throughout his body, shaking off any remaining sleep.   When Erwin finally noticed Levi’s open eyes, he tried to remove his hand as quickly as possible, the unguarded emotion slowly being closed behind walls of platonic affection, but Levi held it in place.  It wasn’t something he thought about for long.  Erwin’s eyes widened, and his ears flared bright red.  

The silence between them, interrupted only by birdsong and the wind rustling in the trees, was thick, full of viscous tension reminiscent of a gas that could burst into flame and swallow them whole at the slightest spark.  Erwin looked away first, extricating his hand gently from Levi’s grasp, the flush in his ears spreading to his cheeks and neck and dissipating slowly.  He moved to the window, unlatching it and opening it, closing his eyes briefly against the sun.  Levi suddenly remembered that he could go out of bed, and he shot up, Erwin twisting round in fright as he heard the clash of bone against floor, which was what happened to Levi when his legs got tangled in the bed sheets.  Erwin pulled the sheet free from Levi and watched in bemusement as Levi raced out of the room, revelling in his freedom, grabbing the cat from where he was lying on the landing and swinging him around, resulting in a stretched out miaw that roughly translated to the expression of pure terror.  Erwin was still standing next to the window when Levi dashed down the stairs, and he winced when a resounding crash reverberated from the bottom as Levi presumably fell.  

“You all right down there?”

“Yes!  Yes, I’m fine!  Maybe broke a couple of ribs and killed the cat, but it’s not too bad.”

Erwin leaned over the banister, spotting a bundle of skewed limbs and a very angry kitten at the base of the stairs, and thought that he’d better go check up on him.  As he was descending slowly, he remembered one of the main reasons why his mother had sent him here.  His ears involuntarily turned red at the thought.  

He sat down on the steps, a few inches away from where Levi was still struggling to get up.  “Are you sure you’re fine?”

“Maybe not as fine as I’d originally thought I was?”

“You need any help?”

“Well, since you’re doing nothing except sit there and laugh as I struggle, you might as well do something, idiot.”

Erwin smiled, and within minutes Levi was up again, running manically around the house, trying to fit in as much work as he could in the space of an hour.  Erwin followed him around like a lost cat, occasionally with armfuls of clutter that Levi wanted to clear away, feeling slightly used but not minding too much.  It was the perfect excuse to keep an eye on Levi, both appreciative and watchful.  The fever could make an unexpected comeback, and Erwin wanted to make sure that Levi wouldn’t overwork himself again.  He was slightly amazed at how fast the smaller boy could work, and how much he appeared to actually love the job.  He’d always known how obsessed Levi was with cleanliness, something that Erwin assumed arose from Levi’s past traumas, but he hadn’t known that Levi actually enjoyed it.  

It was when Levi decided that dusting the entire house seemed like a good idea that Erwin decided to intervene. 

“Levi, I think you’ve worked hard enough for today.”

“But--”

“Listen to me.”  Levi shut up, knowing full well that when Erwin used that tone of voice the best option was to shut up and pray to whatever entity you believed in.  “You're not completely out of the clear yet.  Don’t overdo it.  Take it easy.”

Levi nodded hastily.  “Okay.  Geez, sometimes you scare me a little.”

Erwin rolled his eyes and grabbed the dust cloth from Levi’s hands, folding it and placing it neatly in its drawer.  “You kinda deserve it.”  Erwin was about to say something else when he stopped, apparently remembering something.

Levi enquired curiously, “What?  Did you remember something?”

“Nah, it’s just something I wanna try.”

“Which is?”

Erwin turned round, and by his wicked smile Levi knew he was in trouble.  “Have you ever tried dancing?”

Levi backed up to the wall, as if putting literal distance between him and Erwin would demonstrate how against that idea was.  

Erwin cleared the distance between them in three long strides and grabbed hold of Levi’s hands, aware of every place where their hands made contact.  “It’ll be fun.”

Levi made a face, and looked down at their hands, his smaller ones almost completely hidden by Erwin's.  He liked how Erwin’s hands felt, and wondered how it would feel to be led out in a ballroom by those very same hands, and suddenly the thought of dancing didn’t seem so daunting after all.  He looked up, seeing the expectation in Erwin’s eyes, and his resolve caved in, breaking the record of how fast it could wilt under the gaze of those eyes.  Erwin seemed to spot the resignation in Levi’s eyes because he grinned, and when Levi muttered ‘Fine’ under his breath he gave a whoop of laughter and tugged on his hands, leading Levi with much less grace than Levi imagined but with a lot more gusto.

They stood face to face, and Erwin said, “Put your hand on my waist.”

Levi obliged, letting his hand fall as lightly as he could.  Erwin repositioned it further up, then grabbed Levi’s other hand in his own hand and held it up.  “Chin up,” he ordered, and Levi stuck his nose in the air, trying not to glare too much but fearing his natural response system was beyond caring at this point.  He saw Erwin’s self-satisfied smile, the smile of a man who’s enjoying every second of his poor friend’s embarrassment and eternal shame, and decided to plan a worthy revenge.  He couldn’t quite deny, however, that the hand-holding part was nice.  

Erwin’s voice was much softer with his next command.  “Now, take a step forward with your left foot.”  Levi stepped, and Erwin gracefully moved in time with him, stepping backwards with a fluid, practised movement.  “Now move your right foot to the side,” continued Erwin, guiding Levi gently in those swift, precise movements.  “And now…”

Erwin guided Levi through all the basic steps of the Waltz, and Levi watched, and learned, and stepped on Erwin’s feet countless times (he swore he wasn’t doing so on purpose), and Erwin’s voice seemed to lull him into a daze, and he allowed himself to be swept up in the rhythm of the dance, until the same voice shattered the illusion effectively with the words, “So, there’s this ball…”

Levi halted in the middle of one of the steps, his leg stuck halfway through the air, suddenly forgetting all the basic steps he’d just learned.  “No way in hell am I going to dance with complete strangers and expect to not make a complete fool of myself,” he said in a rush of air, hardly pausing for breath in his sudden panic.

“But you were dancing really well!” Erwin protested, looking slightly crestfallen.

“Only because you were leading me.”

“I wasn’t helping you now, you were doing just fine on your own.  Let’s try it again.”

But of course, now that Levi’s concentration had been shattered by that evil piece of news, he managed to mess up the entirety of his steps.  In an effort to reteach Levi the steps, Erwin let go of Levi's hands, placing his own hands firmly on Levi’s waist and lifting him up, placing his feet gently on top of his own feet, rearranging their hands in waltz position, and began dancing, Levi laughing bemusedly at Erwin’s determination and the crazy things he did to achieve his goals.  Finally, exhausting his last reserves of power, Erwin collapsed on the couch, Levi landing on his chest, still facing Erwin, their faces almost touching.  Erwin’s eyes widened, spotting a situation he hadn’t anticipated before and panicked.  Levi turned red and muttered something about having to go fetch the cat. He vacated his spot and ran off on bare feet, and Erwin slumped his head against the sofa, feeling the warm space where Levi had been just a few seconds ago.

True to his word, Levi returned, holding the cat in the atrocious manner he’d adopted, and he sat down next to Erwin, bouncing slightly and almost causing Erwin to roll of the couch (which would have served him right).  He lost himself in smoothing out Pirate’s fur, making sure it all faced the same direction.  The cat began to purr loudly, and Erwin suddenly found his face covered in stray clumps of fur.  He brushed it off, and felt an irrational stab of jealousy.  His rational side was wondering why he suddenly felt like pushing the cat off Levi’s lap, and his irrational side urged him to do just that.  Looking back at Levi, whose eyebrows had scrunched together and whose bottom lip had jutted out slightly in concentration, the irrational side of him clamoured even louder, and he was barely restraining his hands from carrying out the deed when Pirate somehow read his thought and stood up, stretching his back like a bowstring and walking over Erwin’s face before jumping off the sofa.

Erwin brushed off the fur from his face for the millionth time and opened his eyes, finding himself staring up at Levi’s face. Erwin smiled tentatively up at him, and was surprised when he wasn't greeted by the usual scowl and scoff. Instead, a tentative smile curled the corners of his lips up, and his cheeks were... Erwin narrowed his eyes, not quite believing his eyes. Was he blushing?  
Erwin wasn't sure what was happening, but the pink blotches appearing on Levi's cheeks bolstered his courage. He moved his head so that it was resting on Levi's lap, and raised a hand, stroking Levi's cheek with the back of it, passing it over the darkening pink, his smile slowly fading as he realised that Levi was not pushing him away. Rather, his hands, which had previously been curled up by his sides from where he’d left them after Pirate stalked off, relaxed, and his left hand reached up and tangled with Erwin's hair, and Erwin was taken by a sudden, mad, irrational idea to kiss Levi.

And his mind was completely blown over when his mouth opened of its own accord and blurted it out the words, “Can I kiss you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> plz dont kill me
> 
> ALSO DON'T KILL ME BECAUSE I HAVE NEWS  
> so i was talked into writing a giant modern au multific series (on the SNK characters), and im gonna have to change the updating schedule a bit. im going to be writing three fics at the same time (wow claire that sounds like a chemical disaster waiting to happen) so ill be updating each fic once every three weeks. the good news is, im not gonna stop this fic, dw. bad news, cliffhanger. sorry
> 
> also im gonna be doing the Eruri week (1-8 Aug) which ill post here as a single story (each chap will be a diff day), so be sure to check that out
> 
> im gonna leave, thanking my ever patient (pff) beta OverMyFreckledBody, and u guys, for commenting and stuff 
> 
> much love
> 
> claire xxxx


	6. Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where the boys finally confront the reality of what they're feeling.  
> Alternatively, that chapter where everyone inhales a lot of cat fur.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *crawls in*  
> guess what i'm bACK
> 
> I HAVE LITERALLY NO EXCUSES IVE BEEN AWFUL PLZ FORGIVE ME  
> i was working and i had reached a low point bUT IM BACK  
> ill stop prattling, u guys waited long enough

_Erwin moved his head so that it was resting on Levi's lap, and raised a hand, stroking Levi's cheek with the back of it, passing it over the darkening pink, his smile slowly fading as he realised that Levi was not pushing him away. Rather, his hands, which had previously been curled up by his sides from where he’d left them after Pirate stalked off, relaxed, and his left hand reached up and tangled with Erwin's hair, and Erwin was taken by a sudden, mad, irrational idea to kiss Levi._

_And his mind was completely blown over when his mouth opened of its own accord and blurted it out the words, “Can I kiss you?”_

Levi blinked down at him, gazing down at the face that was slowly shifting between ever darkening shades of red, and felt something inside him, something that had been growing larger deep down in the darkest corners of his heart, twitch.  The twitch grew into a slow, steady beating, the dullness slowly being stripped away until the beating shifted to a thunderous march, and suddenly Levi understood every small incident that had occurred in the past few weeks that he couldn’t, _wouldn’t_ , understand.  And as the newly recognised emotion rampaged through his body in waves that made every nerve in his body tingle, he felt his mouth stretch into a smile, the wonder of the emotion rendering him speechless.  Erwin’s eyes widened fractionally, his pupils dilated, and Levi allowed the newly found feeling to lead him as he leaned down and left the tiniest kiss on Erwin’s slightly parted lips.

He pulled back almost immediately, scared at the sudden wave of _something_ that rushed through his body like adrenaline, and the slightly reckless feeling of wanting more of that, more of that something that was making his head spin.  Erwin’s ears were flaming red as he rose up from Levi’s lap, and for one terrifying moment, Levi thought that he’d done something unspeakably wrong, or that Erwin had suddenly changed his mind.  But as Erwin turned around to face him, sitting cross-legged on the couch, any doubts that had suddenly darkened Levi’s heart vanished.  Erwin’s eyes were shining in a way Levi had never seen them before.  Compelled to do so by something from deep within him, Levi pulled his legs up on the couch, folding them neatly beneath him with the agility of a cat.  

They remained facing each other for a long time, looking at each other, each lost in thought and still unable to process just what had happened between them just a minute ago.  Erwin finally broke the silence by half-raising his hand, moving it close to Levi’s face and then freezing, his hand hovering inches above the skin, so close that Levi could feel the warmth radiating from it.  Levi’s gaze on Erwin’s face was intense, waiting for Erwin to make the next move.  Erwin spoke, and Levi was surprised to note that his voice was much deeper, and seemed to be constricted by a very strong emotion.  “Can I?”

Levi nodded, moving his own hand to grab Erwin’s outstretched hand, placing the fingers, which were trembling slightly, to his face, dropping his own hand and closing his eyes at the feeling of Erwin’s fingers slowly tracing a path along his cheekbones and around his lips, the pounding of his heart the only sound that he could make out.  He felt the fingers slide over his eyelids, tracing the contours of his face, and Levi wondered how long Erwin had been waiting to do just that, and realised that he felt the same.  He opened his eyes, reaching out with both his arms, repeating the same procedure Erwin had done, feeling Erwin’s hands, which had been withdrawn when Levi opened his eyes, close over his, pressing his hands against the blonde boy’s cheeks.  Erwin’s eyes didn’t close; rather, they bore into Levi’s, even as Levi’s hands traced sworls into the fine, invisible hairs on Erwin’s face.  Erwin leaned in closer, tentatively, and Levi uncrossed his legs, creating more space between them, which was quickly eliminated by Erwin’s slow advance.  Levi had forgotten what it felt like to breathe normally.  His hands had slid off Erwin’s face and came to rest at the back of his neck, fingers brushing against short, fuzzy blonde hair.  Erwin stopped when his forehead was resting against Levi’s, leaning dangerously forward, his eyes still latched onto Levi’s, and when he whispered, Levi could feel his breath brush against his lips.

“Can I kiss you?”

The second time round, the phrase didn’t sound surprised or embarrassed.  Rather, the words came out slightly breathless, as if his breath couldn’t keep up with everything that was happening.  And Levi was not quite surprised to notice that he liked the sound of that voice, the unknown side of Erwin, who’d been with him for so long, but never like this.  

This time, Levi spoke, his voice so faint Erwin wouldn’t have heard him if he hadn’t been that close.

“Yes, you can.”

Erwin didn't need much more encouragement, and with the next lunge, he closed the distance between them, sealing their lips together and ruining the delicate balance between them, so that Levi fell back on the sofa, Erwin landing on top of him, both of them hardly noticing because they were too busy doing what both of them, consciously or unconsciously, had been thinking about doing for the past few weeks, something that had happened gradually and naturally over time. It was messy and unpractised, the sounds of their mouths against each other mingling with the harsh breaths that were forcing themselves out in between kisses. Levi opened his eyes when Erwin's lips left his own, not realising he'd closed them in the first place, only to close them again as he felt those lips on his neck, leaving experimenting, tentative kisses on the ultra-sensitive skin there. Levi gasped as they went down lower, and then he calmed down when they stopped, leaving a single kiss on his collarbone. Levi felt Erwin's body shift against his, his legs and arms wrapping around him, and opened his eyes, looking through hooded eyes at Erwin, who'd turned them both sideways, so they were lying on their sides, facing each other, tied together by a mess of intertwining limbs. Their breathing slowly evened out as they lay there, and then, Erwin shoulders started shaking. 

Levi looked cautiously at him, and realised that Erwin was, in fact, giggling. Levi raised an eyebrow, and Erwin, spotting this, only giggled harder. Levi started feeling an answering hysteria rising up his throat, and suddenly, a loud chuckle escaped his kiss-reddened lips. That was the last straw for Erwin, who threw back his head and started laughing, and then both of them were laughing, abandoning any form of intimacy they'd just acquired to the sheer absurdity of the situation. When the bout of mirth stopped, they stared at each for some time, and Levi finally said, “Well, that was something.”

Erwin grinned. “Yeah.”

“What happens now?”

“Nothing. We're still the same people, we're still best friends, we're just also...I mean...”

“In love?”

Erwin blushed furiously at the word, and Levi's bluntness. “I-I guess, yeah,” he stuttered out.

Levi smiled, leaning up and leaving a kiss on Erwin's pink nose. “I can live with that.”

Erwin, apparently not used to Levi being more eloquent then him, gave up on speech, and began trying to de-tangle his limbs from Levi's. As per usual, he ended up on the floor, Levi beside himself with another bout of manic laughter as Erwin groaned in pain on the floor. 

And at that precise moment, the front door creaked open, and Mrs Smith strode in purposefully, pausing halfway to the kitchen to stare at the boys, Erwin going even redder and Levi staring back nonchalantly, sketching a small wave while appearing totally relaxed. Mrs Smith shook her head slightly, smiling, and took off to the kitchen, leaving in her wake a very flustered blonde boy and a smaller, darker boy whose small body shook with suppressed laughter.

Mrs Smith's voice came from the kitchen. “Did Levi learn how to dance?”

Simultaneously, both boys answered. 

“Yes.”

“No.”

They glared at each other. Levi hissed, panicked, “I did _not_.”

Erwin ignored him, and stood up, offering his hand to Levi. Levi took it hesitantly, confirming his suspicions that this simple gesture brought with it a tonne of new emotions, and allowed himself to be pulled up. 

In the end, they had to demonstrate their skills to Mrs Smith, who agreed with Erwin, leaving a very betrayed Levi pouting in the middle of the room. The only comment she made, right before leaving the house again, was, “Maybe practice a bit more on that step which almost tripped you up, Levi darling.”

When the door closed behind her, Erwin turned on Levi, the word 'darling' already on his lips before Levi's finger shut him up. “No,” Levi said firmly, and Erwin didn't say anything, though he promised himself he'd let it slip when the time comes.

They danced three more times, each time going slower and slower, until finally, they were just swaying there, in the middle of floor, Erwin leaving small kisses on top of Levi's head. At a certain point, Levi announced that he was tired. Erwin agreed, and kissed Levi's cheek, as if he was about to leave. Levi grabbed one of his shirt sleeves and stopped him.

“Where do you think you're going, you dumbass? What would your mum tell me if I allowed you to go out of the house in pitch darkness?”

Erwin scratched the back of his head sheepishly, while Levi continued. “It's not as if this is your first time sleeping over. Come on.”

Erwin followed Levi to his room, where he watched as Levi got into bed, not bothering to change out of his clothes. He stared at Erwin from where he was lying, Pirate climbing up next to him and sitting on his face. While Erwin laughed and proved to be very unhelpful, Levi pushed the annoying bundle of fur of his face, spitting out fur, and continued to glare at Erwin.

Erwin blinked at him, stemming his laughter. Levi huffed, and said, exasperatedly, “Well?”

“Where shall I…?”

“Oh you know, you can choose one of the seventeen million beds I have scattered round my palace. Where do you think, Er?”

“There's no need for sarcasm, Levi.”

“Sometimes you can be a bit dumb.”

“Thanks.”

“Only pointing out facts, Erwin.”

Erwin climbed in next to Levi, settling against Levi's curled up body, whose back was curved against Erwin's front. When Erwin felt Levi's breath settle, he kissed the back of his neck, not quite able to believe everything that had just happened, and traced three words in the back of Levi's shirt.

 _I love you._

Suddenly, Levi turned round, his eyes narrowed sleepily, and whispered, “I love you too, but I won't if you don't fucking sleep.”

Erwin grinned, and Levi huffed in a fond way, leaning up and kissing Erwin, falling asleep with his head on Erwin's shoulder.

Levi woke up, his face pressed into a fold in his pillow, his back supported by a hard body curled up against him.  Levi felt Erwin’s breath tickle the back of his neck, and thought about how cold it must be if he ventured out of bed.  He snuggled back under the covers, feeling Erwin’s arm tighten against him as if sensing the small movement.  Levi struggled for a while, and managed to turn around, facing Erwin.  He let his mouth curl up into an uncharacteristically gentle smile, and he pushed himself upwards so that his face could reach Erwin’s.  He was aiming to leave a kiss on his cheek, but Erwin moved, opening his eyes, assessed the situation and moved his head just in time for Levi’s lips to land on Erwin’s mouth rather than his cheek.

Flustered, Levi pulled back, only for Erwin to reach out for him again, kissing him softly and smiling into the kiss.  Levi tried to frown, but couldn’t quite get his face to contort into the familiar expression.  

“G’morning,” Erwin muttered sleepily when they parted, his head falling back on the pillow they were sharing.  Levi tried not to let the effect his voice was having on his body show, but the sudden rush of blood to his cheeks was anything but subtle.  Erwin grinned, pushing stray strands of dark hair out of Levi’s face to get a better view.  Levi frowned up at him, embarrassment making him grumpy.  He muttered a ‘Good Morning’ in response, earning a blinding smile from the ruffled blonde, who seemed to be in very good spirits.

“Why the fuck are you beaming so widely, Erwin?  It’s too early in the morning for you to be so happy.”

Erwin grinned.  “But I get to kiss you whenever I want to, now.  That’s enough to make my heart sing.”

Levi buried his face into the palms of his hands, cheeks flaring red again at the bluntness of Erwin’s statement.  Erwin laughed, a sound that reminded Levi of a brook gurgling over rocks with a wild, reckless abandon, flinging his arms round Levi and hugging the air out of the slighter boy.

A few minutes later, they managed to actually get out of bed, Erwin dragging Levi to the kitchen and sitting him down forcefully on a chair.  Levi looked up at him, confusion written clearly in his eyes.  Erwin only grinned, making something twist in Levi’s heart, who in turn masked it with one of his famous scowls.  The blonde boy turned his back to the smaller boy, who averted his gaze from Erwin’s back and focused his attention on Pirate, who was rolling on his back, demanding attention.  Soon, Levi was lost in a rising flurry of fluff and a deep undertone of contented purring, hardly noticing Erwin clanking away behind him.  Only when the rich aroma of bacon reached Levi’s nose did he turn around, surprise widening his eyes as he stared at what Erwin had created.  “Breakfast,” announced Erwin upon spotting Levi’s stare, a hint of pride slipping into his voice as he set down Levi’s pate on the table in front of the scrawny boy.

Levi didn’t bother much with being polite.  After eating nothing but soup for the past number of hours, the sight of a proper, solid breakfast was too much of a temptation to think of manners.  In between bites and around a mouthful of bacon and eggs, he muttered, “Didn’t know you could cook.”

Erwin beamed, delicately picking up his bacon with a fork and staring at Levi as he shovelled food with the grace of a beggar who has not seen food in a week.  “Mother taught me.  She said it would come in handy.”

Levi nodded, and said something that Erwin didn’t quite catch.

“What?”

Levi swallowed, and muttered, slightly abashed, “It’s good.”

Erwin chewed thoughtfully, his ears turning a tell-tale shade of pink.  Levi noticed, and he reached out and flicked the nearest one gently, smirking knowingly.  Looking back down at his plate, which was, sadly, empty, he decided that having Erwin over meant infinitely better breakfasts, and he’d definitely impose on Erwin’s niceness and force him to cook for him again.  He picked up his plate and went to wash it, suddenly realising how content he felt.  It was...surreal.

The peace was shattered when a loud rapping on the door made both of them jump practically out of their skins.  Levi bashed Erwin’s back a few times to stop the boy from choking to death before going to open the door to find Erwin’s mother beaming at him on the other side.  Erwin joined Levi at the door, tears streaming from his eyes, evidence of his choking fit.

After a bit of fuss over Erwin, and Levi rolling his eyes from behind Mrs Smith's back and causing Erwin to laugh, which resulted into further choking, the atmosphere settled down again.  Mrs Smith hummed contently, shooting glances at her son in case he starts choking on air again before turning on Levi, who was sitting on the floor with Pirate stretched on in his lap.  “Levi sweetheart,” she began, waiting for Levi’s gaze to meet hers before continuing.  “I really do want you to join us for the ball.”

Levi looked stricken, as if he wasn't expecting Mrs Smith to be considering her previous proposal seriously.  His voice when he answered trembled slightly.  “B-but I’m not all that good at dancing.”

Mrs Smith smiled warmly at him.  “It doesn’t really matter, son.  I want you to be with us, because you’re family.”

Levi looked away, trying to hide the tears that had sprang at the corners of his eyes by burying his face in his cat’s belly.  After inhaling approximately half of his fur and considering this particular action as being one of his more tactless decisions, he managed to meet Mrs Smith’s gaze again, and gave a small nod of assent.  Her wide smile made any remaining doubts scoot away into the shadows.  
     
This is why Levi now found himself in the back room of a shop, trying on a suit that seemed way too posh to be his.

Levi looked down at himself, trying to form an image of how he looked. Mrs Smith was cooing at him, fussing at his collar and smoothing out the fabric at the shoulders. She turned him round, and suddenly he was facing a smoothed piece of glass, in which his reflection met his astonished eyes. He hardly recognised himself. The suit hugged his thin frame in a way that didn't make him look too thin. The green cravat at his neck was the only spot of colour in his outfit. The jacket and trousers were black, and the dress shirt was a rich, creamy colour. Levi took it in, his hands slowly feeling the fabric of the jacket in wonder. He'd never had enough money to buy himself such expensive clothing, and he'd never dreamed that he'd ever manage to even wear such clothing. He could see Mrs Smith over his shoulder in the mirror, her blonde curls falling in front of her face as she bent down to kiss the top of his head. She was the only person he'd ever allowed to do that, before Erwin came along and turned his whole view of things upside down. He moved back into her embrace, struck dumb by emotion. Mrs Smith was quiet, her arms encircling him from behind, understanding his silence. 

After he'd changed back to his own clothes, he waited for Erwin's turn, trying to ignore the shop owner’s daughter’s chatter.  He’d recognised Hanji when they’d walked in, but he was too shy to actually come up with answers to her extremely random ramblings, so he just nodded occasionally, until Petra walked in and provided the needed diversion.   He hated to admit it, but he was quite looking forward to seeing him in a suit. He was slightly disappointed when he came out of the tiny room in his own clothes, and upon seeing his slightly crestfallen look, Erwin smirked knowingly, and later, with Mrs Smith walking in front of them, carefully carrying both suits, he leaned close to Levi's ear and whispered, “You can't see my suit yet.”

Levi scowled. “Why ever not, you fool?”

Erwin smiled smugly. “Just because.”

Levi kicked him in the shins, and tried not to feel too excited about the ball. Nope, he was certainly not looking forward to whatever Erwin was planning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope i dont get killed too much  
> if ure still reading this, thank you so much, i don't deserve such amazing readers xxx  
> thanks to OverMyFreckledBody who as usual, beta'd this chapter and annotated it with beautifully hilarious comments 
> 
> im gonna shimmy off now  
> also i wont be updating regularly, because last year of high school is pretty tough so ye  
> but im not gonna stop writing this fic, so please be patient c:  
> lotsa lotsa lotsa love
> 
> Claire xxxx


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